As furniture providers we get the opportunity to go and visit lots of offices and check out the variety of ways different companies choose to set up their offices in terms of layout and furniture. Yes we see a lot of the standard arrangement that you would expect in an office, you have your desk, a chair, some storage and so on; but we started thinking this week about companies that might have chosen to push the boundaries or go against the norm when it came to fitting out their office.

We have found what we would definitely call 5 unusual office set ups that we wanted to share with you, and who knows you might be inspired to give your office a re-vamp.

100 people 1 desk

It’s sure to say that it will be a bit difficult to whine about your boss or another colleague in this office where all 100 employees sit at one humongous desk.

The Barbarian Group, a creative agency based in New York have taken team mentality to a whole new level by having this 4,400 square foot desk created. The desk was created by automotive robots in Los Angeles and then shipped to New York, flat-packed ready to be fully constructed there.

Our first thoughts were that this unique piece of furniture must have been very expensive to create. But Benjamin Palmer, chairman of the company explained that it was actually a cheaper solution for fitting out the office than if they bought standard cubicles and desks. We have to admit it does make for a fun working environment, after all no one wants to be stuck in a cubicle all day, so fingers crossed everyone gets along.

…we certainly hope note, it doesn’t exactly look entirely comfortable, what do you think, would you choose this or an orthopaedic chair that is ergonomically designed to give your back greater support?

This futuristic office actually doesn’t have any furniture at all! A part interior design and part art project has taken the standard office setup and smashed it to pieces. The installation at the Looiersgracht 60 Gallery in Amsterdam encourages visitors to try out different sitting and standing working positions. Well just like our height adjustable desks we guess it offers people the opportunity to switch up their working position throughout the day, which would work as long as you can find space where you want to work and are willing to move all your stuff with you!

Bored of using the stairs?

Well if you find walking up and down the stairs all day at work a bite of a bore, then you will love what Grip Limited have done in their Toronto office. For a snappy and fun way to get down they have installed a superfast slide, and if you have had enough of the slide there is also a fireman’s pole you can use instead.

To fit in with the Grip Limited company process the office was designed to embody the sense of play and obviously use fun as a way to get the creative juices flowing for their ad agency.

Along with the unusual inter-office transportation, there is also a whole host of other innovative office fittings including:

Rubber reception desk resembling a giant tyre

A boardroom inspired by a vintage beer fridge

A sauna and hot tub obviously for office collaborations and quick re-groups

To be honest we kind of fancy working here now, sounds like fun!

The Reconfigurable Desk

Our height adjustable desks allow great flexibility for work but the desks created for the Skullcandy International Office in Zurich have looked at flexibility in a completely different way. The desk has been designed as a playground for the employees; because they are often travelling they can sit anywhere around the table by plugging their rolling sideboard in and because of the organic geometry of the table it allows employees to reconfigure the desk in multiple ways allowing for both individual and collaborative work.

Taking Comfort to a Whole New Level

When filling up their Brooklyn headquarters, Etsy really have captured the personality of their website, cluttered and crafty. The whole office has been filled with lots of brightly coloured furniture and other odd bits and pieces that you definitely wouldn’t expect to find in a standard office space.

We particularly love their phone cabinet. Have you ever being on the phone at the same time as 3 other people and you can barely hear yourself speak, let alone the person you are talking to because there is so much additional chatter in the background. Well Etsy have come up with a creative and cosy solution in the form of a cabinet sized booth which has been decorated with bright colours (unsurprisingly) and filled will lots of plush toys and cushions creating a lovely environment for you to have a quiet conversation.

And after looking at lots of pictures, the office does have a very nice homely feel; which is very much unlike the rigid, stiff and formal feeling you get in most offices, yes obviously it does have its benefits but it always nice to be able to bring some colour and comfort to a bland office space.

Are you feeling inspired?

Well I am not going to say that you need to go out and completely re-design the way you have set up your office, because after all it may be boring but obviously it works well as a professional working environment. But when we think about it what these offices spaces have in common is fun. Yes offices are for working but it never hurts to bring some fun to work!

If you are thinking it is time for you to give your office a re-vamp then contact us today on 0117 3600 123, to see how we can help you with your office furniture requirements.